The Quest tes-4

by Wilbur Smith

  'Seldom in all our travels have we come upon such rich lands,' Meren said.

  As they passed, the farmers and their families came out to welcome them with bowls of sherbet and red wine. They spoke Egyptian with the accents of the Two Kingdoms. They were all well nourished and dressed in good leather and linen. The children appeared healthy, but they were strangely subdued. The women were rosy cheeked and well favoured.

  'What pretty girls,' Meren remarked. 'Not an ugly one among them.'

  They soon found out why the pastures were so green. Suddenly the triple peaks of the snow-decked volcanoes were hidden behind a heavy

  layer of cloud. Onka rode back to them and told Taita, 'You should don your capes. It will rain within the hour.'

  'How do you know?' Taita asked.

  'Because it rains every afternoon at this time.' He pointed ahead at the gathering clouds. 'The three peaks that dominate Jarri have many names, one of which is the Rainmakers. They are the reason why the land is so bounteous.' As he finished speaking, rain swept over them and, despite their capes, soaked them to the skin, but within a few hours the clouds had been blown aside and the sun shone once more. The land was washed clean and bright. The leaves on the trees glistened and the soil smelt of rich dhurra cake.

  They came to a fork in the road. The column of slaves took the left hand path, and as they marched away Taita heard a sergeant of the escort remark, 'They are sorely needed in the new mines at Indebbi.'

  The rest of the convoy continued along the right fork. At intervals the troopers came to salute Colonel That, then left the column and rode away in different directions to their home farms. In the end only That and Onka, with an escort of ten troopers, remained with them. It was late afternoon when they topped a gentle rise and discovered another small village nestled below them among green trees and pastures.

  'This is Mutangi,' That told Taita. 'It is the local market town and magistracy. It will be your home for the time being. Quarters have been set aside for you and I am sure you will find them comfortable. You have heard it said before, but you are honoured guests in Jarri.'

  The magistrate came out in person to welcome them, a man of middle age named Bilto. His full beard was tinged with silver, but he was straight and strong, his eye steady and his smile warm. Taita looked at him with the Inner Eye and saw that he was honest and well-intentioned but, like Colonel That Ankut, he was neither happy nor contented. He greeted Taita with the greatest respect, but looked at him strangely, as though he was expecting something from him. One of his own wives took Hilto and the others, including Nakonto and Imbali, to a commodious stone house near the far side of the village, where slave girls were waiting to attend to them. Bilto led Taita, Fenn and Meren to a larger building across the road. 'I think you will find all you need for your comfort.

  Rest and refresh yourselves. Within the next few days the council of oligarchs will send for you. In the meantime I am your host, and yours to command.' Before he left them, Bilto looked again at Taita with troubled, searching eyes, but he said no more.

  When they entered the house a major-domo and five house slaves were lined up to receive them. The rooms were large and airy, but the windows could be covered with leather curtains, and there were open hearths in the main rooms where fires were already burning. Although the sun was still above the horizon there was a chill in the air, so the fires would be welcome when the sun set. Fresh clothes and sandals had been laid out for them and the slaves brought jars of hot water for washing. The evening meal was served by the light of oil lamps, a rich stew of wild-boar chops, washed down with a robust red wine.

  Until then they had not realized that the journey had exhausted them.

  Meren's eye was paining him so Taita poured a warm balm of olive oil and soothing herbs into the socket, then administered a dose of red sheppen.

  The next morning they all slept late. Meren's eye had improved but still hurt.

  After breakfast, Bilto took them on a tour of the village, of which he was proud, and explained how the community lived. He introduced them to the leaders and Taita found in the main that they were honest and uncomplicated. He had expected to detect some ambiguity in their psyches, as he had with Bilto and Colonel That, which might be attributed to the proximity and influence of Eos, but there was nothing of significance, just the petty foibles and frailties of humanity. One was discontented with his wife, another had stolen an axe from his neighbour and was consumed with guilt, while someone else lusted for his young step-daughter.

  Early in the morning of the fifth day Captain Onka returned to Mutangi to deliver a summons from the Supreme Council. They were to leave at once, he told them.

  The citadel that contains the chamber of the Supreme Council is forty leagues hence in the direction of the Mountains of the Moon. It is a ride of several hours,' Onka told Taita. The weather was fine and sunny, the air crisp and exhilarating. Fenn's cheeks were glowing and her eyes sparkling. At Taita's bidding she fell back with him to the rear of the party, where he spoke quietly to her in the Tenmass.

  'This will be a crucial test,' he warned. 'I believe we are heading for the stronghold of the witch. You must suppress your aura now and keep it so until we return to Mutangi.'

  'I understand, Magus, and I will do as you bid me,' she answered.

  Almost immediately, her expression became neutral and her eyes dulled.

  He saw her aura fade and its colours diminish until they were little different from those emitted by Imbali.

  'No matter what stimulation or provocation you encounter, you must not allow it to flare up again. You will not know from which direction you are observed. You dare not relax for a moment.'

  It was well past noon when they entered a steep-sided valley that cut into the central massif of the mountain range. No more than a league further on they reached the outer wall of the citadel. It was built of large rectangular blocks of volcanic rock that had been fitted together by skilled masons of another age. The passage of time had weathered the stone. The gates stood open: it seemed probable that they had not been closed against an enemy for many years. When they rode into the citadel they found that the buildings were grander and more substantial than anything they had seen since leaving Egypt. Indeed, the largest was strongly reminiscent of the temple of Hathor at Karnak.

  Grooms were waiting to take the horses, and red-robed functionaries led them through pillared halls until they reached a small door in a loggia and went through it into an antechamber. Refreshments had been set out on the long table, bowls of fruit, cakes and jugs of red wine, but first they went into the adjoining rooms to freshen themselves after their journey. Everything had been arranged with consideration for their comfort.

  When they had eaten a light meal, the council usher came to lead them into the audience chamber. It was warmed by charcoal braziers and padded mats lay on the stone floor. He asked them to seat themselves and pointed out the positions they should occupy. He placed Taita at the head of the group, with Meren and Hilto behind him. He sent Fenn to the rear rank with the others, and Taita was relieved that he had shown no special interest in her. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as she sat demurely beside Imbali and saw that she was restraining her aura to match that of the tall woman.

  Taita returned his attention to the layout and furnishings of the chamber. It was a large room of agreeable proportions. In front of where he sat, there was a raised stone platform on which stood three stools.

  They were of a design he had seen in the palaces of Babylon, but they were not inlaid with ivory and semi-precious stones. The wall behind them was covered with a painted leather screen, which hung from the high ceiling to the stone paving and was adorned with patterns in earthy

  colours. When Taita studied them he saw that they were not esoteric or arcane symbols but merely decorative.

  There was the sound of hobnailed sandals on the stone floor. A file of armed guards entered from a side door and arranged themselves at the bas
e of the platform, grounding the butts of their spears. The robed usher returned and addressed the company in sonorous tones: 'Pray show respect for the noble lords of the Supreme Council.' All followed Taita's example and leant forward to touch the ground with their foreheads.

  Three men came from behind the leather screen. There could be no doubt that they were the oligarchs. They wore tunics of yellow, scarlet and pale blue, and plain silver crowns on their heads. Their manner was stately and dignified. Taita scried their auras and found them diverse and complex. They were men of force and character, but the most impressive was the man in the blue robe who took the central stool. There were depths and nuances to his character, some of which Taita found puzzling and disturbing.

  The man made a gesture for them to relax, and Taita straightened.

  'Greetings, Magus Taita of Gallala. We welcome you to Jarri, the land of the Mountains of the Moon,' said the blue-robed leader.

  'Greetings, Oligarch Lord Aquer of the Supreme Council,' Taita replied.

  Aquer blinked and inclined his head. 'You know me?'

  'I knew your grandfather well,' Taita explained. 'He was younger than you are now when last I saw him, but your features are cast in his exact mould.'

  'Then much that I hear about you is true. You are a Long Liver and a sage,' Aquer acknowledged. 'You will make a shining contribution to our community. Would you be kind enough to introduce to us your companions, whom we know less well?'

  Taita called them forward by name. Meren was the first and went to stand before the platform. 'This is Colonel Meren Cambyses, bearer of the Gold of Valour and Companion of the Red Road.' The council studied him in silence. Suddenly Taita became aware that something unusual was afoot. He diverted his attention from the three oligarchs to the leather screen behind them. He scried for some hidden presence but there was none. It was as though the area behind the screen was a void.

  This alone was enough to alert him. Some psychic force was cloaking that part of the chamber.

  Eos is here! he thought. She throws no aura, and has concealed herself behind a screen more impenetrable than leather. She is watching us. The

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  shock was so intense that he had to fight to keep himself under control: she was the ultimate predator, and would smell blood or weakness.

  At last Aquer spoke again: 'How did you lose your eye, Colonel Cambyses?'

  'Such things happen to a soldier. There are many hazards in our lives.'

  'We will deal with that in due course,' Aquer said.

  Taita could make little of such an enigmatic statement. 'Please return to your place, Colonel.' The interview had been cursory, but Taita knew they had extracted all the information they required from Meren.

  Next Taita called Hilto. The oligarchs took an even shorter time to consider him. Taita saw Hilto's aura burning honest and unremarkable, except for the fluttering ribbons of blue light at its edges, which betrayed his agitation. The oligarchs sent him back to his seat. They treated Imbali and Nakonto in much the same manner.

  At last Taita called Fenn. 'My lords, this is an orphan of war on whom I took pity. I have made her my ward and named her Fenn. I know little about her. Never having had a child of my own, I have grown fond of her.'

  Standing before the Supreme Council, Fenn looked like an abandoned waif. She hung her head and shifted her weight shyly from one foot to the other. It was as though she could not bring herself to look directly at her inquisitors. Anxiously, Taita watched her with the Inner Eye. Her aura remained subdued, and she was playing perfectly the role he had set for her. After another pause Aquer asked, 'Who was your father, girl?'

  'Sir, I knew him not.' There was no flicker of falsehood in her aura.

  'Your mother?'

  'Neither do I remember her, sir.'

  'Where were you born?'

  'Sir, forgive me, but I do not know.'

  Taita noted how well she was holding herself in check.

  'Come here,' Aquer ordered. Timidly she hopped up on to the platform and went to him. He took her arm and drew her closer to his stool. 'How old are you, Fenn?'

  'You will think me stupid, but I know not.' Aquer turned her, slipped his hand into the top of her tunic and felt her chest under the linen.

  'There is already something.' He chuckled. 'There will soon be much more.' Fenn's aura glowed softly pink and Taita feared she was about to lose her self-control. Then he realized she was displaying only the shame that any young girl would experience on being handled in a manner she did not understand. He had more difficulty with keeping his own anger

  in check. However, he sensed that this little scene was a test: Aqueii was attempting to goad a reaction from either Fenn or Taita. Taita remained stony-faced but he thought: In the time of reckoning you shall pay in full for that, Lord Aquer.

  The oligarch continued to fondle Fenn. 'I am sure you will grow to be a young woman of rare beauty. If you are fortunate you may be chosen for great honour and distinction here in Jarri,' he said. He pinched one of her small round buttocks and laughed again. 'Run along now, little one. We shall consider it again in a year or two.'

  He dismissed them, but asked Taita to remain. When the others had left the room, Aquer said politely, 'It is necessary that we of the council confer privily, Magus. Please pardon us while we withdraw. We shall not leave you long alone.'

  When they returned the three oligarchs were more relaxed and friendly, and remained respectful.

  'Tell me what you know of my grandfather,' Lord Aquer invited. 'He died before I was born.'

  'He was a loyal and respected member of the court of Regent Queen Lostris during the period of the exodus and the Hyksos invasion of the Two Kingdoms. Her Majesty entrusted him with many important tasks.

  He discovered the road that cuts across the great bight of the Nile. It is still used, and saves several hundred leagues of the journey between Assoun and Qebui. The queen bestowed honours upon him for this and his other accomplishments.'

  'I still have the Gold of Honour I inherited from him.'

  'The queen trusted him to the extent that she chose him to lead an army of two thousand men south from Qebui to discover and chart the Nile to its source. Only one man returned, demented with fever and the hardships he had encountered. Nothing was ever heard of the rest of the army, or the wives and other women who accompanied them. It was presumed that they had been swallowed up in the vastness of Africa.'

  'The survivors of my grandfather's legion who won through and finally reached Jarri were our ancestors.'

  'They were the pioneers who built this little nation?' Taita asked.

  'They made an invaluable contribution,' Aquer agreed. 'However, there were others who had been here long before them. People have been in Jarri since the beginning time. We honour them as the Founders.'

  He turned to the man who sat at his right hand. 'This is Lord Caithor.

  He is able to trace his direct line back through twenty-five generations.'

  'Then it is only right that you should honour him.' Taita bowed

  towards the silver'bearded oligarch. 'But I know that others have joined you since the time of your grandfather.'

  'You are referring to Colonel That Ankut and his legion. Of course, you are already acquainted with him.'

  'Indeed, the good colonel rescued me and my party from the Basmara savages at Tamafupa,' Taita agreed.

  'That Ankut's men and their women have made a welcome addition to our community. Our land is large and we are few. We need them here.

  They are of our blood, so they have assimilated smoothly into our society.

  Many of their young people have married ours.'

  'Of course, they worship the same panoply of gods,' Taita said delicately, 'headed by the holy trinity of Osiris, Isis and Horus.'

  He watched Aquer's aura flare angrily, then saw him bring his temper under control. When he spoke his response was mild: 'The subject of our religion is one we will cover in
more depth later. At this stage, suffice it to say that new countries are protected by new gods, or even by a single god.'

  'A single god?' Taita feigned surprise.

  Aquer did not rise to the lure. Instead he reverted to the previous subject: 'Apart from Colonel That Ankut's legion, there have been many thousands of immigrants from far across the earth who, over the centuries, have made their way over great distances to Jarri. All, without exception, have been men and women of worth. We have been able to welcome sages and surgeons, alchemists and engineers, geologists and miners, botanists and farmers, architects and stone-masons, shipbuilders and others with special skills.'

  'Your nation seems to have been built on firm foundations,' Taita said.

  Aquer paused for a moment, then seemed to change tack. 'Your companion, Meren Cambyses. It seems to us that you have a great affection for him.'

  'He has been with me since he was a stripling,' Taita replied. 'He is more than a son to me.'

  'His damaged eye has been troubling him sorely, has it not?' Aquer went on.

  'It has not healed as cleanly as I had wished,' Taita agreed.

  'I am sure that, with your skills, you are aware that your protege is dying,' Aquer said. 'The eye is mortifying. In time it will kill him .. .

  unless it is treated.'

  Taita was taken aback. He had not divined this impending disaster from Meren's aura, but somehow he could not doubt what Aquer had

  said. Perhaps he himself had known it all along but had shunned such an unpalatable truth. Yet, how could Aquer have known something that he did not? He saw from his aura that the man had no special skills or insights. He was neither sage, seer nor shaman. Of course, he left the chamber, but not to confer with the other oligarchs. He has been with another, Taita thought. He gathered himself and replied, 'No, my lord.